Blissful Mexican Riviera Cruise
Norwegian Bliss Cruise Review to Mexico
Contributor Level:
Second Mate
Cruises: 4-6 cruises
Reviews: 6
Helpful Votes: 168
7 Night Mexican Riviera (Los Angeles Roundtrip)
Sail date: March 20, 2022
Ship: Norwegian Bliss
Cabin type: Balcony
Cabin number: 14188
Traveled as: Singles/Friends
Reviewed: 2 years ago
Review summary
All in, I would rate this cruise very enjoyable. It was my birthday (on embarkation day) and the first time I'd cruised with someone else (all 5 of my previous NCL cruises were solo) - my best friend came with me, we booked separate balcony cabins across the hall from each other which was very convenient, especially for days when we just wanted to do our own thing. I spent a significant time in the Observation Lounge, it was one of my favorite spots on the ship - and it will be difficult to sail on another NCL ship that doesn't have one in the future! I did feel as though the nightlife was somewhat lacking, but that could have been due to the half capacity or that I was not looking in the right place. Having only 3 ports (one of which an early morning with early afternoon departure) felt as though we spent a lot of time on the ship, which to me is perfectly fine, but to others might not be preferable. I never felt claustrophobic, the Bliss is an absolutely beautiful ship with incredible entertainment and so much to see and do. No lack of bars, restaurants or places to just relax. I likely would not choose this specific itinerary again unless it includes another port of call, however I also live on the East coast so the flight and time difference can take a toll. All said and done, I'm very glad I chose this cruise and have many fond memories and gorgeous pictures from the Mexican Riviera.Embarkation
The line to show paperwork (covid test, passport, vax card) was quite long, but in reality only took about 30-40 minutes to get through when I arrived around 10:15am. The line to check in was much shorter by the time I got in the building, and waited maybe another 15-20 minutes before that was complete. Boarding started right at 11:30 and was very organized (by boarding group #).
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
The Main dining rooms (we tried all three) were wonderful, we especially enjoyed Manhattan Room. The food was consistently delicious and my friend's favorite meals were here instead of at any of the specialty restaurants we tried. I ended up doing the upgrade so I had 4 specialty dining packages - I did La Cucina, Teppanyaki, Los Lobos and Ocean Blue. I am not much of a seafood or meat eater (I am mostly vegetarian with the occasional chicken or seafood thrown in). My favorite was Teppanyaki, although we did end up eating there very late, our reservation was for 9pm and our whole table just felt exhausted (it was on embarkation day) so we were not very engaged with the chef - I think he realized that partway through and reduced the theatrics in order to just make our food, as we were all starving. La Cucina was okay, I had pesto gnocchi as my entree and the gnocchi were very chewy and felt under/overcooked, not sure which. The gorgonzola salad starter was really good, as was the table bread. Los Lobos could not modify a menu item for me (who would have thought the burritos were pre-made?) but what I did end up ordering was very tasty with the exception of the enchilada soup which I ended up not eating as it was more of a thick cream vs a loaded soup, I thought the table salsa was great. Ocean Blue was just okay as well - my friend ordered the seafood fettucine which came out dry, sticky, cold and lacking in sauce. We made do with the many sides we ordered which were all good, and my salmon was pretty good as well.
Onboard Activities
I did not spend much time out by the main pool as it did get pretty crowded, but we found a spot up on deck 19 that had padded loungers and a bar that was our favorite spot for the week. I used the fitness center once, it did get crowded but there was plenty equipment available. Unfortunately didn't get to try the slides :( I also felt in the evenings there was a lack of nightlife - the social was empty, nothing going on up at the pool deck or Spice (with the exception of a couple theme parties such as the Glow Party which was tons of fun). So I'm really not sure where everyone was late night, but we ended up just going to bed several nights after shows because we couldn't figure out where the action was.
Entertainment
The band that played on the pool deck and in the atrium was amazing, we went to almost every single Beatles show, they were also really great. Jersey Boys was very well done but very long (1.5 hours). I did not like the 18+ comedian on the last night, none of his jokes landed and it felt very awkward and forced - though I didn't catch any earlier shows so maybe it was 'final night fatigue'.
Service and Staff
The crew were absolutely wonderful. I did tip throughout the week, and the poolside/deck staff bringing drinks were consistent and friendly and always eager to take drink orders. My room steward was almost invisible, which didn't bother me at all - every time I came back to my room it was spotless and clean so his timing was impeccable.
Ship Quality
This is the newest NCL ship I've been on and it was absolutely gorgeous; very clean and well-maintained, the bathrooms were always clean and the
Cabin / Stateroom
The rating I'm providing is based on the original cabin I had upon embarking. I was in 14748 initially, but there was an extremely annoying constant creaking and knocking sound coming from the balcony side, and despite wearing earplugs and covering my head with pillows I could still hear it throughout the night and was unable to sleep. I went to guest services the next morning and they said they would call me with an update that day. I never received a call and had a lot going on that evening with dinner reservations and shows so I did not go back down to ask them about it. I went early the next morning (after another sleepless night) and they told me that they had a room ready for me the day prior, however no one had called me. They profusely apologized and gave me a choice between two available cabins of the same category on the same side of the ship, I went with one further aft (14188) and it was perfectly silent the rest of the week. They also sent a bottle of sparkling wine to make up for the communication issue. I have absolutely no complaints with how it was handled and they made it right in the end.
Ship tip
Don't skip out on the Observation Lounge and the Waterfront - especially in the afternoon when the sun is warming the deck!
Thumbs up
0
Ports of call
San Pedro (Los Angeles), California
Puerto Vallarta is absolutely GORGEOUS. I had no idea how lush and beautiful the landscape was. We did the Majahuitas and Yelapa shore excursion, which involved getting on a large boat with about 150+ other cruise passengers (some from the other ship that was in port with us that day) and sailing to two stops only accessible from the water. The boat rides were extremely long, my friend and I both did not enjoy that part as it made us nauseous and we really just wanted to spend time on the beaches. The first stop (Majahuitas) was absolutely gorgeous, it looked like a little beachfront resort with padded chairs, beds and benches with rustic stump tables and plenty of umbrellas. There was also a beach bar handing out beer (included). However, although the excursion details stated you would have to swim to the beach, I did not realize that they meant it would be in deep water, so you really could not bring anything with you on the beach unless it was waterproof - luckily I brought my Booë waterproof waist pouch and a waterproof phone case so we were able to take pictures! We got back on the boat and another long ride later we arrived at Yelapa. This beach was not what we expected - we luckily did not have to swim to it, however it was quite a long walk from the pier where we were dropped off. It was about what you'd expect anywhere else on a public beach in Mexico - expect to be constantly accosted to buy trinkets, hold lizards and purchase items from the locals. I understand that they need to make a living, but it was incessant and we did not enjoy ourselves at all. If we could have skipped that last beach altogether and stayed at Majahuitas we would have been happy. If I visit this port next time, I might try to just find a different (shorter) excursion with one stop. All in, the trip was about 7 hours and in total we spent about 1 hour on the beaches combined.
I did not even get off the ship at Mazatlan. It's unfortunate, but the port itself kept me from getting off the ship as it was incredibly ugly and located in what looked to be a pretty rundown area. It was clearly a shipyard full of shipping containers and the only way to get outside of the port area was to take a tram. I don't think we missed much, although I did lose out on $ I had spent on an excursion I had booked ahead of time.
Cabo was absolutely beautiful. We were unfortunately only anchored there from 6am-2pm, so it really limited options - especially because this is a tender port. The tenders were quick, there was no line to get off the ship, I'm assuming a good number of passengers did not get off at all. We ended up going down to the open beach area visible from the ship and swimming and enjoying the beach and the views. I do hope to visit again and hopefully catch a sunset and check out some of the popular bars on the beach strip.
Disembarkation
Having the facial recognition process set up by customs made disembarkation an absolute breeze. We were able to enjoy breakfast on the ship until shortly after 9 and then walked off self-assist. We also had transfers to LAX, however both of our flights were not until around 4pm, so we ended up spending a lot of time in the airport.